Richard Taruskin

Richard Taruskin
Taruskin in 2014
Born	Richard Filler Taruskin (1945-04-02)April 2, 1945 New York City, U.S.
Died	July 1, 2022(2022-07-01) (aged 77) Oakland, California, U.S.
Spouse	Cathy Roebuck ​ (m. 1984)​
Children	2
Awards	Noah Greenberg Award Kyoto Prize in Arts and Philosophy
Academic background
Education	Columbia University (B.A., M.A., PhD)
Academic work
Discipline	Russian music
Institutions	UC Berkeley Columbia University
Notable works	Oxford History of Western Music

Richard Filler Taruskin (April 2, 1945 – July 1, 2022) was an American musicologist and music critic who was among the leading and most prominent music historians of his generation.^[1] The breadth of his scrutiny into source material as well as musical analysis that combines sociological, cultural, and political perspectives has incited much discussion, debate and controversy.^[2][3] He regularly wrote music criticism for newspapers including The New York Times. He researched a wide variety of areas, but a central topic was Russian music from the 18th century to the present day.^[4] Other subjects he engaged with include the theory of performance, 15th-century music, 20th-century classical music, nationalism in music, the theory of modernism, and analysis.^[4] He is best known for his monumental survey of Western classical music, the six-volume Oxford History of Western Music.^[2][5] His awards include the first Noah Greenberg Award from the American Musicological Society in 1978 and the Kyoto Prize in Arts and Philosophy in 2017.